Page 33 of Doctor I Do

His lop-sided smirk has me thinking he knows exactly how much I appreciate his looks.

My throat runs dry, so I take a step and accept the coffee from his grip, ignoring the spark from grazing his hand with mine. I sit at the breakfast bar and sip the caffeine like it’s water. It’s definitely not going to calm my rapid pulse, but at least the warm, familiar latte comforts me.

“What’s in there?” I ask, nudging my nose toward the brown paper bag.

He slides it across to me. “Croissants.”

I open the bag and my stomach grumbles on cue.

“I didn’t know if you wanted it plain or something else. So, I got one plain and one with ham and cheese.”

Of course, he did, because he can’t stop being nice. I peek up at him from the bags as he walks around the counter.

“You can choose, and I’ll have whatever one you don’t want.” He takes a seat on the stool next to me.

“That doesn’t seem fair.”

He shrugs. “Why? I’m a guy. I eat anything.”

“Always hungry.”

“Always.” His voice is gravelly, and we’ve fallen back into the flirty behavior of last night.

I tear open the bag to occupy my thoughts and eat the plain croissant, enjoying the buttery flavor on my tongue. I didn’t realize I was hungry until I started eating.

As I chew, his phone chimes. He glances down with a frown at his phone before looking back at me.

“I just got paged for an emergency surgery. I don’t know how long I’ll be, but my guess is at least a couple of hours. You’re welcome to stay longer. Your car is in the drive.”

“How?” I ask, popping the last mouthful of my croissant in my mouth.

“I had it moved last night. When you fell asleep on the sofa,” he says it like it’s no big deal. But to me, it is.

“You didn’t have to. But thanks,” I say, grateful for his generosity.

“On the topic of moving. You’re going to need to start moving your stuff here today,” he announces. He doesn’t bat an eyelid. He doesn’t seem bothered I’m about to move in here. Unlike me, because I’m wondering how I’ll be able to leave with the tension after last night. Will we kiss again?

“Is that right?” I ask in a light voice, challenging him.

He smirks back, knowing I’m playing with him. “Yes. I can help you after work, or I can swing by on my way home and grab everything from your old house and do it for you.”

I shake my head. “No. I want to do it. I’m sure it won’t take me long and I need to do something today.”

I don’t need him going into my room and bringing everything here. If I go, I’ll know exactly what I need to bring and what I can leave there for when I move back.

“All right, but if you change your mind, call me.” He dips his chin and takes my now empty bag, rolling it into a ball and tossing it into the bin. Then he grabs his keys. “I’ll see you when I get home.” He winks and walks out, leaving me alone in his house.

Soon to be our house.

Why does it feel comfortable between us already? It scares me a little. I could easily fall for him, and that’s a huge problem when he’s not the type of guy to settle down.

Chapter 10

Tahlia

All my clothes are laid out in my room. It’s daunting seeing the amount of clothes I’ve acquired over the years of living here. I need to cull some. But today isn’t the day to do that. No, today is about moving. I’m still trying to wrap my head around how fast everything is happening and all the big changes going on in my life. One after another.

I never thought I’d be moving out of this house with a guy for a fake engagement. I always thought it would be for love. This isn’t love, though. I run my hand through my hair, wondering how it feels for him to have me move into his space. If this is a lot for me, how does it feel for him? And after last night, there’s a new dynamic. A playful shift between us. If it was flowing easily before, it’s thickening with some heat now. Well, it is for me. Soon, we’ll be under one roof, with a kiss between us and a whole heap of sexual tension.

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